Scientists satisfied with program Kiriyenko made at ISS

The chain of experiments was not over with the landing, - Russia’s cosmonaut Mikhail Korniyenko said

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ZVESDNY GORODOK /Moscow region/, March 13. /TASS/. Scientists are satisfied with the scientific program, which Russia’s cosmonaut Mikhail Korniyenko fulfilled during the 11-months’ mission to the International Space Station (ISS), he told TASS on Sunday.

"We (with the U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly - TASS) have fulfilled all tasks we had. And the scientists are satisfied with the results they got. Now they process all the data received during the research," he said, adding the work would take months.

He also said the chain of experiments was not over with the landing.

"I can say, I have begun another stage of the flight," he said. Immediately after the landing he participated in a "field test" experiment, where scientists studies health of a cosmonaut and how he could make elementary physical exercises. In another experiment, called Constellation, he practiced landing on another planet. Besides, during the time after the landing he underwent a huge number of medical experiments and tests.

"No time to think about relaxing yet," he said.

Mikhail Korniyenko and Scott Kelly embarked on their space mission to the ISS on March 27, 2015. They were launched into orbit from the Baikonur Cosmodrome (Kazakhstan) on board the Soyuz TMA-16M spaceship. The astronauts lived in space continuously for 340 days. They returned to Earth together with the third crew member - Russian cosmonaut Sergei Volkov who had a 182-day expedition to the orbiting outpost. They landed on the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft.

For the United States it was the first long-term space mission experience, while Soviet and Russian cosmonauts had been on year-long orbital missions. Thus, in 1988 Vladimir Titov and Musa Manarov spent 365 days on Russia’s Mir orbital station, and in 1995 Valery Polyakov spent 437 days in orbit, setting a world record for the longest space flight.

After Kelly, Korniyenko and Volkov return to Earth, the ISS mission is continued by the crew comprising Russia’s Yuri Malenchenko, NASA astronaut Timothy Kopra and Timothy Peake of the UK. On March 19, NASA astronaut Jeff Williams and Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka and Alexei Ovchinin will launch aboard the Soyuz TMA-20M spacecraft and join Expedition 47.